


peeled freckles from our shoulders

by Misprinting (misprinting)



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Drabble, F/M, body issues, summer!fic, teenage feelings, unrequited feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-06-17
Updated: 2011-06-17
Packaged: 2017-11-10 12:25:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/466235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misprinting/pseuds/Misprinting
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Raven doesn't tan naturally, but she can pretend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	peeled freckles from our shoulders

The grass is wet but warmed already from the sun and it sticks to Raven’s back and gets in her hair. She wears sunglasses and slaps on sun lotion and _bakes_ , turning pink and then bronze until she can look in the mirror at herself and turn her mouth up like she’s nearly smiling.

She wears a white bikini that should make Charles double-take, even just to reprimand her or say, _for god’s sake, Raven, but on some clothes_ , but he doesn’t. She spends a lot of time not-thinking about how his stupid legs look when he rolls his trousers up - pale and thin and fragile - and how thin and nearly anaemic-looking his wrists are. 

She experiments with her skin. One day she gives herself light freckles across the bridge of her nose. The next day she brings her whole skin tone up to the level of them so her blonde hair stands out against it and her thighs are dark and gorgeous, smooth and touchable, and _why doesn’t Charles want me? Why doesn’t he even look at me?_

The sun’s relaxing. She gets a smile for it, for pretending her tan isn’t just something she can _do_ , so she pretends to work for it like she pretends to shave twice a week and pretends to need a hair cut every six weeks, and every so often she gets a smile and maybe even a hug and a, _I know this is hard, but you’re doing so well. I’m so proud of you._

She even gives herself bigger breasts one day. Nothing.

That summer’s probably when Raven really stops believing Charles might ever see her as anything other than _blue_. She keeps pretending, though.


End file.
